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2014 – A Very Political Year

Ponderings is back for a very exciting and politically intriguing 2014. Of course, we have upcoming statewide elections for U.S. Senator, Governor, Lt. Governor and many other offices. The new Houston City Council is being sworn in today with 6 new Members that will change the politics of that entity.

Statewide Elections promise to be very exciting beginning with the primaries on March 4. The Republican primaries are clearly far more interesting than the Democratic races. However, the Democrats have some hotly contested races as well as 5 people seeking the privilege of opposing incumbent U.S. Senator John Cornyn. He also faces a primary challenge from Congressman Steve Stockman in his own primary. I would say it is a safe bet that Cornyn returns to D.C. but most pundits never predicted Ted Cruz so I will just wait and watch this one.

Beyond the primaries, the race for Governor should provide solid entertainment throughout the year as well as the race for Lt. Governor. It is a fairly safe bet that Wendy Davis and Greg Abbott will be facing off for Governor and Leticia Van de Putte will be the Democratic nominee for Lt. Governor. In fact, the Republican primary for Lt. Governor may be the most fascinating Republican primary race. We’ll be looking at it more closely as the year progresses.

Meanwhile, local government will continue to churn. 6 new Council Members will bring their own thoughts and perspectives to the discussions of city government and no doubt spark new approaches to debates at the Council table. Mayor Parker enters the year stronger than ever and should be able to successfully push through many of her goals for her final term.

She has decided to put some of her energy into changing term limits. We’ve written extensively about term limits over the last few years and will follow this debate closely. Parker has signed on to a push led by Council Member Bradford to seek to change the limits rather than abolish them. It will be an interesting discussion.

2014 may also be the year we learn the fate of the Houston Astrodome, our iconic facility that pulls at our heart strings but serves no purpose at the moment. Harris County Commissioners Court will make the decision of what happens to the structure.